Electronically operated firearms are known in the prior art. Such firearms have typically embodied a solenoid adapted to displace an element of the firing mechanism such as the firing pin, hammer or sear. One problem with conventional solenoid firing element arrangements in firearms is the difficulty in providing a simple safety scheme.
In addition, many electronically operated firearms utilize a capacitor to energize the solenoid. While a capacitor can adequately actuate a solenoid, there are leakage and discharge difficulties which ca reduce the service life of the battery.
Prior art electronic firearms have not incorporated round-in-chamber indicators which would illuminate a light emitting device or render the firearm inoperative upon indicator failure. While such an indicator is not a safety device and would only be an adjunct to the primary means of determining whether there is a round in the chamber, i.e., visually inspecting the chamber, it could offer some convenience to a shooter who is ready to fire.